Heir of Locksley

by N B Dixon

  * * * * *

  Chapter 12

  Robin was up at daybreak the following morning. He dressed in his yeoman’s clothing and, after a brief hesitation, picked up his bow. He tried to tell himself it was so that he would have a weapon in case Guy and his cronies attacked again, but he knew deep down he just wanted to impress Lucy.

  He was looking forward to seeing her again. He admired her plucky spirit, but he also needed to get away from his father.

  He hadn’t been lying when he’d told Lucy he dreamed of a different life. He had become aware of a growing dislike for the laws and customs of England, which were all designed to benefit one class of people and oppress another. He found living under his father’s rigid discipline stifling. Only Will made it bearable.

  The evening before, he’d been forced to endure yet another of his father’s feasts, where lords shoved their daughters at him with the air of someone offering a tasty treat. They were shallow, vapid girls all of them. Lucy would be a welcome change.

  He’d hoped to get away unseen, but Lord Locksley’s voice spoke from the chair by the hearth.

  “And where do you think you’re going?”

  Lord Locksley got to his feet and eyed Robin up and down, his gaze lingering on Robin’s bruised face and rough clothing. Robin had explained his injuries away, claiming a riding accident, though he wasn’t sure his father believed him.

  “Where are you going?” Lord Locksley repeated.

  “Out.”

  “I spoke to Thomas. He said your horse never left the stable.”

  Robin said nothing. He certainly wasn’t going to tell his father how he had spent his day.

  A shadow passed over Lord Locksley’s face. “Sometimes, it is as if I don’t know you.”

  “You never did.” Robin heard the coldness in his voice.

  He let the outer door slam behind him, putting an end to the conversation.

  He half expected his father to call him back, but it wasn’t Lord Locksley’s voice he heard.

  “Where are you off to so bright and early?”

  Robin sighed. First his father, then Will. Was there no privacy around here?

  “I’m going to see Lucy.”

  “I suppose you want me to cover for you if your da comes asking questions.”

  “I would appreciate it, yes.”

  Will looked resigned. “You’d best be on your way, then.”

  Robin smiled his thanks and beat a hasty retreat.

  ***

  It seemed he had arrived just in time. Lucy was making her way with care up the steep path, a full bucket of water swinging from each hand. The buckets looked heavy. Where was that good-for-nothing brother of hers? In a drunken stupor, no doubt.

  Robin hurried to take them from her. “Allow me.”

  She hung on. “Oh, I couldn’t.”

  Robin tugged a little more insistently, and she let go. Her cheeks were flushed.

  “If you could leave them here.” She indicated a spot against the wall.

  Robin obeyed.

  Lucy smiled, but it quickly faded to concern as she took in her brother’s handiwork. “You should let me put a poultice on your face. It looks painful.”

  “It’s nothing. I’ve had worse. Where is your delightful brother?”

  “He and Da are tending the bean crops. Mam had some errands to run in town.”

  Three children appeared around the corner. Robin recognised Lucy’s little brother and the two friends he had been playing with the day before. The girl hung shyly back, but the other boy stared at Robin with frank curiosity.

  “You know Much,” Lucy said. “This is Lara and her brother Edward. They are the children of George, the carpenter. Their grandfather built most of this village.”

  Lara went to hide behind Lucy, while Edward’s eyes drifted to Robin’s bow.

  “Is that yours?”

  “It is. Would you like to hold it?”

  Edward tried to lift it and pulled a face. “It’s heavy. Can you shoot with it very well?”

  “Fairly well,” Robin said, amused. “I’ll show you if you like.”

  All three children nodded.

  Delighted that he had a ready-made excuse to show off, Robin cut several willow wands from a nearby tree and set up his targets. He gave his quiver to Much.

  “You can be my squire. Hand me my first arrow.”

  Much obeyed. Robin let fly, splitting the first wand neatly in two. He heard gasps from Lara and Edward.

  “Another arrow please, squire.”

  Standing further back every time, he performed the same feat with each of the remaining wands. The children and Lucy all clapped, and he basked in their admiration.

  “I want to learn how to do that,” Much announced. “Da said he would make me a bow. One day, I’ll be that good.”

  “I had a very good teacher.” Robin took back his arrows as Much retrieved them one by one. The boy held them as if they were made of glass.

  Lara had so far forgotten her shyness to wander out from behind Lucy. She was staring at Robin wide-eyed. When he winked at her, she giggled and ducked out of sight again.

  “Can you use a sword, too?” Edward wanted to know.

  “I can use a sword, a mace and a quarterstaff.”

  “I wish I could use a sword,” Edward said. “Then I could stab Guy of Gisborne if he ever tried to hurt Lucy again.”

  “You would do no such thing,” Lucy said sharply. “You’d be hanged if you did. He’s a nobleman, remember?”

  Edward thrust out his lower lip. “But he’s bad. Da said so.”

  “Run along and play,” Lucy ordered. “Stop pestering Robin.” They scampered off. “They so rarely get a treat of any kind. It’s all chores from morning to night. Edward is learning the carpenter’s trade, though he has no interest in it. He wants to be a knight.”

  “I gathered that.” Robin smiled as distant shouts and laughter reached him. “What about Much?”

  “He’s never been strong. He does what he can to help out in the mill, but his health is a constant worry for us.”

  “It doesn’t seem right that you should slave away for a crust of bread while I and others like me sit in luxury by a roaring fire.”

  “You were born to that life. You didn’t ask for it.”

  “Neither did you. Seeing you, how you cope, it makes me ashamed.”

  Lucy reached out, as if to take his hand. “You have nothing to be ashamed of. You are a good person, Robin.”

  Robin didn’t bother to contradict her. He closed his fingers around hers. They were roughened from hard work, but warm. The colour rose in her cheeks at his touch.

  “What about you?” he asked. “Did you ever want more?”

  Lucy’s smile was wistful. “When I was little, I used to pretend I was rich with a fine house and all the food I could eat. I’d share it with my family and friends, and they’d never be hungry again. Now, I’m just grateful they’re alive and well.”

  Robin released her hand to wrap an arm around her waist. “Lucy, I—”

  A terrible rending, crashing noise froze both where they stood.

  Lucy’s eyes widened in shock. “The cedar tree!”

  Someone screamed, a high, agonised sound that chilled Robin to the bone.

  “No!” Lucy tore away from him. “I told them not to play there. Oh, merciful heaven!” She broke into a run, Robin close on her heels. He dreaded to think what they were about to find.

  Lara ran to meet them, sobbing. “The tree fell on Much.”

  “I told you children to keep away,” Lucy chastised. “Why didn’t you listen?”

  Robin looked down at the crumpled figure on the ground. Edward knelt beside Much in the damp grass, his upturned face white and frightened.

  The tree had come down right across the road, its upper branches still swaying in the slight morning breeze in a parody of life.

  Much lay on his side. His leg was pinned beneath one huge limb, and there was a g
rey tinge to his skin. His eyes were closed.

  Robin feared the worst as he knelt by the boy and took up one limp wrist.

  “Is he alive?” Lucy breathed. She had one arm around the sobbing Lara.

  Robin didn’t answer, forcing himself to concentrate on the bony wrist beneath his fingers. He deliberately averted his eyes from Much’s trapped leg.

  There was a pulse, weak but steady. Robin waited to be certain and then turned to Lucy.

  “He is still alive.”

  Relief broke across her face. “We need to get this tree limb off him.”

  “You two,” Robin said to Lara and Edward. “Stand well back.”

  They obeyed without a word. Lara’s hand crept into Edward’s.

  Robin got a good grip on the limb. The trick would be moving it without damaging Much’s leg any further. The limb would be difficult to move on his own. Robin hesitated, wondering if he should run for Will, but another look at the deathly pallor of Much’s face decided him.

  “I’ll need your help,” he said to Lucy. “If we can lift this enough, maybe we can ease his leg free.”

  Lucy knelt down at once, her face pale but determined. Even in the midst of the crisis, Robin had to marvel at her self-command. Other women would have gone into fits of hysterics and been no use to anyone.

  “Ready?”

  She nodded.

  Robin used all his strength. The muscles on his arms corded with the strain. Beads of sweat broke out on his forehead. Lucy, too, was giving it all she had. Robin felt the limb move a little, but it was still not enough to pull Much free.

  Much groaned and opened his eyes. His pain-filled gaze found his sister.

  “It hurts,” he whimpered.

  “I know, sweetheart. We’ll have you out soon. Don’t worry. You must try to be brave.”

  They heaved again. The limb shifted a little more.

  “It’s no good,” Robin panted. “I must go for help.”

  The sound of hoofbeats reached their ears. Robin looked around, hope surging up. Maybe Will had come to find him. His hope died a second later.

  Katrina was riding past, accompanied by a groom. Both slowed as they approached.

  Katrina’s eyes widened in shock.

  “Robin, what—?”

  Robin cut her off. “You!” He gestured at the groom. “Come here.”

  The man hesitated.

  “Quickly,” Robin snapped. “Or do you want this child to die?”

  The man looked to Katrina, who nodded. They both dismounted, and while Katrina held the horses, the groom hurried over. Lucy moved aside, and he took up his position across from Robin.

  “Heave!” Robin ordered.

  Their united strength was enough to shift the limb and work Much’s leg free. Much cried out once, then lost consciousness.

  Robin bent to examine his leg. It was terribly mangled and twisted at an unnatural angle. Something white poked through the torn cloth of his britches. It took Robin a moment to realise it was bone. Blood spread in a growing crimson stain beneath him.

  Lucy had seen it, too. She was visibly fighting back tears. “He needs help. Now!”

  Robin thought fast, wiping perspiration from his face with a forearm. “Kirklees Abbey. The nuns are well known for their healing skills. It’s closer than trying to take him to Nottingham for a physician.”

  He turned to Katrina, who had been watching their efforts in silence. “Will you ride to the abbey and tell the nuns what has happened?” He didn’t wait for her answer but addressed her groom. “Ride to Locksley Manor as fast as you can. Find Will Scathelock. He should be in the stables. Ask him to bring a cart here.”

  He looked back at Much. Even if they lined the cart with blankets, the journey would be agonising. Still, there was no other alternative.

  The groom turned to Katrina, waiting for her to tell him what to do. She looked between him and Robin and then nodded. “Do as he says.”

  She swung into the saddle and galloped off.

  “Someone needs to tell Mam and Da what’s happened,” Lucy said.

  Robin waved Lara and Edward over. They approached, both looking scared. “Go and fetch the miller and his wife, and bring them back here, quick as you can.” They dashed off.

  Lucy was cradling Much’s head on her lap. With her meat knife, she cut strips from her already ragged dress and bound them as tightly as she could around his leg. He moaned but didn’t open his eyes. His breathing was fast and shallow.

  Robin knelt beside him, wishing he knew what else to do. He had never felt so helpless in his life. Lucy’s eyes met his, and he saw his desperation reflected back at him.

  “He’ll be all right,” he said, though he wasn’t sure he believed it.

  The next few minutes were a whirl of activity. Will and Katrina’s groom arrived with a horse and cart, the miller and his wife on their heels.

  “We need to make him as comfortable as possible,” Robin said. “The roads are rutted and uneven.”

  The miller’s wife hurried inside, returning with two scratchy blankets. Now came the bit Robin dreaded. However careful he tried to be, this was going to hurt. He slid both arms under Much’s inert body and slowly lifted him in his arms. The boy’s eyes flew open. He let out a yell of pain that went to Robin’s heart. The miller’s wife clapped both hands over her face.

  “Pull yourself together, Mam,” Lucy snapped at her. Taking one of the blankets, she spread it out over the hard wooden boards of the cart and, with Robin’s help, wrapped Much in the second. They lowered him onto the makeshift bed and Lucy, without waiting for permission, climbed in beside him, taking his head on her lap once more. His small hand grasped hers tightly.

  “I’m going with him,” she informed her parents, the look in her eyes daring them to argue. “See if the reeve will let you borrow his pony and come along after me.”

  Robin jumped up on the driving board and grasped the reins. He turned to Will. “Tell my father I will be late home. You can tell him what has happened, too, though I doubt he’ll care.” To the groom, who had been standing awkwardly by all the while, Robin said, “Thank you for your help.” He clicked his tongue at the horse, and the cart moved forward.

  ***

  It was a good half-hour ride to Kirklees Abbey. For Robin, the journey was a study in torture, though he was sure that whatever he felt was nothing to the pain Much was suffering. He didn’t dare look back at him too often as he fought the temptation to drive the horse as hard as it could go. If he did, he’d likely kill Much, but the urgency of his mission pressed on him. He could hear Lucy murmuring soothing words to her brother, and Much’s whimpers of pain. Robin’s hands clenched on the reins.

  At last, the abbey walls came into sight. Robin pulled the cart up and jumped down. He ran to the small door that gave access to the abbey gatehouse and pounded on it for all he was worth. After what seemed an age, it was opened by an elderly nun.

  “What can I do for you, young man?”

  “I have a boy who needs urgent medical attention. His leg was trapped under a fallen tree.”

  “Ah, yes. Lady Katrina told us to expect him. You may bring him inside.”

  The infirmary was a long room full of simple straw pallets that served as beds. The air was thick with the smell of herbs and death. Robin laid Much on the palate the nun indicated. She then ordered him and Lucy outside.

  The wait seemed endless to Robin. He held Lucy’s hand, trying to lend some comfort. At last, she turned to him.

  “That’s my whole family you have saved now.”

  Robin was embarrassed. “I did what anyone would do.”

  “Do you think Lord Locksley would have saved the life of a lowly peasant boy?”

  Robin was saved the necessity of answering as the nun who had admitted them came bustling down the corridor.

  Both Robin and Lucy jumped to their feet.

  “Well?” they demanded in unison.

  “The boy will live. We have set the b
one and sewn up the wound. Providing he does not take the wound fever, he will recover, but he will never have full use of that leg again. He will likely have a limp for the rest of his life.”

  Robin and Lucy exchanged dismayed glances. It could have been worse, Robin supposed, but when he thought of Much running about with his friends, whole and healthy, a lump came to his throat.

  There was a sudden commotion as Much’s parents and Peter came barrelling down the corridor. Lucy ran to give them the good news. She and her mother clung together, sobbing. Robin decided this was probably the right time to leave, but he had taken only a few steps when Peter moved in his way. Robin braced himself for accusations, maybe another punch in the face.

  Peter stood for a moment, shuffling his feet and looking awkward.

  “I was wrong.”

  Robin blinked. “About what?”

  “You’re not like the rest.” He held out a hand.

  Somewhat bemused, Robin shook it.

  “Thank you for saving my little brother.”

  Robin nodded. Suddenly, he wanted nothing more than to get away. He was an intruder here.

  He hurried back outside to the waiting cart. He had just taken up the reins when a voice called out to him.

  “Robin, wait, please.”

  Robin slid off the cart and turned. Lucy was standing there, looking up at him. She was pale and her eyes were red.

  “Were you going to leave without saying goodbye?”

  “I suppose I was.”

  “But we haven’t thanked you properly.”

  “I don’t need your thanks. If we had been watching the children more closely, or if I had not distracted you—”

  She laid a hand on his sleeve. “It was no one’s fault, Robin. You saved Much’s life, and we’re all grateful.”

  “You don’t hate me?”

  For answer, Lucy rose on her tiptoes and kissed him.

  Robin was so surprised that he stood there, frozen for a second. Then his arms were around her. Her lips were warm and soft. As Robin pulled her against him, he felt the strong, rapid thud of her heart. Lucy’s eyes fluttered shut as he stroked back a stray lock of hair from her cheek. He let his lips linger on hers a moment longer, then raised his head to look at her. Her cheeks were flushed and she was smiling. He drew away reluctantly.